MDE21414 - Middle House Shaft at Bampfylde Mine (Monument)

Middle House Shaft. Part of Bampfylde Copper Mine. [1] In eastern section of Bampfylde Mine. It is depicted in a section of the site published in 1772, where it is shown reaching into the bottoms of the mine at 50 fathoms or 300 feet deep, as it also is on the 1868 inventory drawing. The shaft remains as a rectangular hole, around 6 feet square, at the centre of a depression. [2] Section drawing showing location of Middle House Shaft, dated 1772. [3] Site of a 'Shaft' depicted on the 25 inch 1889 1st Edition Ordnance Survey map as a large subcircular depression around 18 metres in diameter. [4] The 25 inch 1905 2nd Edition map labels the feature as an 'Old Shaft' and depicts it as a small circular feature within a larger earthwork. [5] This shaft is clearly visible on aerial photographs of the area which were examined as part of the Exmoor National Park National Mapping Project in 2009. [6-8] The feature is also depicted on 2018 Ordnance Survey MasterMap data at SS 7402 3279, within a subdivided area within Long Wood. [9]